REVIEW: Republic of Tea Matcha

I am a big fan of Republic of Tea, both what the company stands for and their teas. They support some wonderful causes and, from what I can tell, seem to treat the earth – and their employees – with respect.

Their flavor combinations tend to be both tasty and healthy and they seem to be geared towards the average person who is interested in tea. What I mean is that while some retail teas can come across as trying to be fancy so that you’ll only drink them in your fine China tea cups, Republic of Tea teas are “intended to be sipped” (so it says on their website) but feel free to sip them from your favorite mug curled up with a big fluffy blanket in front of the tv or as your relax with a good book.

I always seem to have a collection of their tea tins on hand, but this was the first time I tried their matcha, coincidentally on the same day I got an email about their flavored matchas. My mother used to say that if it was quality food you were eating, you didn’t need to hide it in sauces. I feel the same way about tea. So I went with the pure Matcha Powder.

Pricewise, it was more than most normal teas on the shelf, but less than DoMatcha, often considered the gold standard matcha.

It smelled smooth, not too “green”. It called for a teaspoon of powder which I placed in a bowl as the water heated. I had my bamboo whisk and was ready to go.

As I poured the water, it seemed a little darker than I was expecting, but figured I would withhold judgement until I saw how it frothed up.

Not bad… It had a decent layer of froth on top and when I added a bit more water, I did end up with a bit more froth.

I poured it into my glass, added some more hot water and a bit of unsweetened vanilla almond milk. I’ll admit I added about a third of a packet of sweetleaf stevia and tasted it.

On the positive side, it was smooth, had a nice finish, and was not overly vegetal tasting. It tasted green, which was expected, and was a bit refreshing even as a hot tea, but I didn’t feel like I was outside chewing on my lawn, which was much appreciated.

There was definitely no bitterness that many green teas have and I’ve read others say about some matchas. And, the more of the cup I drank, the more I enjoyed it.

Since I was first exposed to matcha teas almost a year ago, I’ve noticed the real deal can be hard to find. Even the tea places near where I live don’t generally have the matcha powder, and there are very few options even in the organic markets. That means if you’re searching for pure matcha powder, your options are limited.

I like that this matcha was available at Whole Foods and for a reasonable price.

What I love about matcha is that you’re actually consuming the ground up leaf, not just whatever comes out in the steeping process, which always makes me feel like I’m doing something really good for my body. Even more important for me lately, is that it provides a mental alertness without the effects of caffeine. It’s also said to boost metabolism, increase energy, is super high in antioxidants and is a blood detoxifier.

It may not be the end all be all, all hail the matcha, finest grade you can find stuff, but for the person who is still learning about teas and appreciates them for the taste and nutritional qualities of the, you certainly can’ t go wrong with this one.

And when you consider the health benefits of matcha, you pretty much can’t go wrong.